Gold Medal Manicures

You may have noticed some of your favorite Olympic athletes sporting some seriously fashionable nails in London and wondered whether that was some freak coincidence. Nail art is certainly the top beauty trend of 2012, so much so that it found its way to the world's premier sporting event where manicures would usually be the furthest thing from people's minds. Olympians competing in sports from archery to weightlifting are getting noticed for more than their athleticism. Instead of asking, "How did they do that?" everyone is wondering, "Who did their nails?"

For London 2012, London-based nail artist Sophy Robson teamed up with P&G to provide competing athletes with nail services at the Olympic Village in Stratford. Robson and her team of nail artists, collectively known as NailPorn, have become an overnight success, performing 10-15 manicures per person, per day at the Olympics. With 207 different nail designs to choose from, the nail techs report that the majority of athletes choose to have their national flag painted on their nails.

Canadian Soccer Player Robyn Gayle, right, gets her nails done
at the Athletes’ Village at the Olympic Park in London.

Robson's work has made the rounds at the Olympics as world-class athletes compete with manicures worthy of a gold medal. Check out some photos of 2012 Olympians and their patriotic polish:

British Swimmer Rebecca Adlington

British Archer Amy Oliver

French Basketball Player Emmeline Ndongue

USA Swimmer Missy Franklin

German Cyclist Kristina Vogel

Colombian Swimmer Carolina Colorado Henao

USA Tennis Star Venus Williams

Mexican Archer Aida Roman

Lithuanian Swimmer Ruta Meilulyte

Japanese Badminton Player Reiko Shiota

Mexican Weightlifter Luz Mercedes

Which Olympian's nails are your favorite?

XO,

The Style Ref